‘You mean, of course, that one’s training never ends,’ he says, laughing. ‘Well, I am glad you found the time to visit us again but I am sure you have better things to do elsewhere.’
Turn to 211.
509
The tree stands at the brink of a precipice of weathered rock that has sloughed off into a small gully. Stalks of grass protrude from between the chunks of stone. Then you notice something else: a doorway of pitted granite, half buried in the debris.
Climb down to the door turn to 391
Go back turn to 583
510
Warily, you edge closer to the unmoving figure. Make a THIEVERY roll at a Difficulty of 15.
Successful THIEVERY roll turn to 531
Failed THIEVERY roll turn to 432
511
Browsing around the many tiny shops and market stalls, you soon discover that you have to haggle if you want a bargain.
Armour To buy To sell
Leather (Defence +1) 50 Shards 45 Shards Ring mail (Defence +2) 100 Shards 90 Shards Chain mail (Defence +3) 200 Shards 180 Shards Splint armour (Defence +4) 350 Shards 300 Shards
No COMBAT bonus 50 Shards 35 Shards
COMBAT bonus +1 250 Shards 180 Shards
COMBAT bonus +2 550 Shards 380 Shards
Other items To buy To sell
Compass (SCOUTING +1) 400 Shards 350 Shards
Lockpicks (THIEVERY +1) – 300 Shards
Candle 2 Shards 1 Shard
Parchment 8 Shards 5 Shards
Tatsu pearl 1000 Shards 900 Shards
Platinum earring – 790 Shards
Items with no purchase price are not available to buy, although if you have one you can sell it. When you have done all your shopping, turn to 155.
512
Ladies-in-waiting come to your room with little trays of spiced nut cakes, rice, pickled squid, roast pheasant, carrot and garlic salad, and various fruits mixed with liana syrup and shaved ice. After a hot bath, a good meal and a massage you soon begin to feel in the pink. Restore your Stamina to its normal unwounded score.
Your room contains a lacquer cabinet where you can store up to 5000 Shards and six possessions. To leave something here, just cross it off your Adventure Sheet and note it in the Cabinet box below. It will be here when you return.
When you are ready to leave, turn to 565.
Cabinet
513
The raven slips out of its cage and, taking the rope in its beak, flies swiftly in circles around the giant. Just as it is tying the knots, the giant opens a bleary eye. ‘What’s going on?’ he says in a voice like a hippopotamus gargling with mud.
‘Quick’ says the raven. ‘Kill him before he breaks the rope.’ Make a COMBAT roll of Difficulty 14 to do the deed in time.
Successful COMBAT roll turn to 549
Failed COMBAT roll turn to 712
514
You are travelling in north-west Akatsurai, in a district that the locals tell you is called Satsu Province. ‘West lies Oni Province,’ a young woodcutter tells you. ‘It is the home of bone-eating demons!’
Go east to Narai turn to 155
Go west to Oni Province turn to 395
Go south turn to 609
515
Above muddy rice fields where the water lies in pools as still as mirrors, dragonflies dance metallically in the sunbeams.
Roll two dice.
Score 2-8 A quiet few days turn to 3 Score 9-12 Uncanny happenings turn to 168
516
The place that mortals know as the Dragon Isle is in reality Horai. It is the home of the sea elves, who keep it veiled under a frightening illusion to deter visitors. You are able to see it as it really is: pretty green gardens dotted with crystal lakes and phantasmagoric woodland. The air is filled with perfume and sweet music and the animals are so tame that they will eat from your hand.
The sea elves come down to the shore to greet you – a carefree company in pastel silks with pale eyes and long hair that floats like golden mist on the breeze. They give you magic fruit that restores your Stamina to normal if you were injured. Also increase your crew’s quality by one step (poor to average, average to good, or good to excellent).
When you are ready to sail away, turn to 122. 517 !
You traverse a flower-filled valley towards a ridge of sombre pine trees. Arriving at a stream, you are about to cross when you notice that a large lump in mid-stream that you had mistaken for a boulder is actually the head of an enormous river serpent. You were just about to use it as a stepping stone.
If the box above is empty, put a tick in it and turn to 439. If it was already ticked, turn to 101.
518
‘Why not buy this excellent vessel?’ says a man whom the harbourmaster introduces you to. He gestures to a sturdy craft whose triangular sails remind you of a folded paper fan.
‘What do those characters mean that are written along the side?’ you ask him.
‘They spell out the name of the ship: Hell Spawn.’
You examine this and many other ships. Choose from the types listed below.
Ship Type Cost Capacity
Barque 200 Shards 1 Cargo Unit
Brigantine 450 Shards 2 Cargo Units
Galleon 900 Shards 3 Cargo Units
Record the details of your ship on the Ship’s Manifest; you can name her if you wish. Remember to cross off the cost from the money recorded on your Adventure Sheet. The crew quality is average. Each time you arrive at a new destination, remember to change the entry in the Docked column. Currently, of course, the ship is docked at Chambara.
Go aboard turn to 571
Return to the city centre turn to 79
Hire better crew turn to 536
519
Chomei will forge a sword for you for the following prices: COMBAT bonus +1 250 Shards
COMBAT bonus +2 450 Shards COMBAT bonus +3 900 Shards COMBAT bonus +4 1200 Shards COMBAT bonus +5 1600 Shards
He is not interested in buying anything from you. If you buy a sword, remember to cross off the money before turning to 79.
520
The road leads in only one direction: east, to the capital. Few travellers care to venture over the Chu River into the gobIin- infested countryside of Oni Province.
Take the road to the capital turn to 500
Go north cross-country turn to 378
Go west across the Chu turn to 594
521
The morning dawns clear and bright. There is no sign of what became of the funeral procession. You cannot even see where they could have been taking the coffin.
You breakfast on a stew of herbs and mushrooms, watched from a distance by a solitary fox crouched on a log. Now it is time to set off again. Turn to 611.
522
Sakkaku is a town built from the near-black timber of Kwaidan Forest. It would present a very baleful sight if not for the locals’ custom of planting flowers in the mossy thatching of their roofs, which in spring and summer transforms the town into a phantasmagoric idyll.
Take a room at an inn turn to 278
Visit the local shrine turn to 293
Leave the town turn to 520
523
If you have the codeword Fracas, turn to 451. If not, turn to 569.
524
You are skirting the west coast of Yodoshi, the main island of the Akatsurese group. The navigator’s chart, based on a map painting he once saw on a paper fan in Yarimura, indicates your position to be roughly on a latitude with Noboro Monastery.
Steer for open ocean turn to 102
Follow the coast south turn to 450
Follow the coast north turn to 200
525
‘I can show you the way to the Pure Land,’ he says, ‘but you will only be able to remain there until daybreak.’ He scatters some dust from his hand and a shining path appears leading up into the western night sky. ‘This path will take you there. Be sure that you do not stray off it! When you hear me ring the gong in my temple you must drop whatever you are doing and return at once, because at sunrise the path will vanish.’
Set out along the path turn to 542
Stay here after all turn to 610
526
You have a horrid dream that three disembodied heads come flying over the moor while you are asleep and start to devour you from the feet up. You half wake, feeling warm and numb as though you have been drugged. The heads look up with gory grins, then resume their meal. What is left of you goes back to sleep. Lose the codeword Future and turn to 140.
527
The ghoul gives vent to a loud screech and lashes out with its dirt-caked claws.
Ghoul, COMBAT 7, Defence 12, Stamina 15
If you flee it will get a free parting blow as you run off.
Turn and run turn to 506
Fight and win turn to 544
528
If you have the codeword Fright, turn to 545. Otherwise turn to 561.
529
You are surrounded by dense forest. Splashes of gold sunlight penetrate the green gloom by day, but after nightfall the darkness becomes absolute.
Press deeper into the woods turn to 562
Look for a path out turn to 420
530
To enter the tomb you must have something to light your way: a lantern or candle for instance. Otherwise your only option is to come back and explore it another time – assuming you can ever find your way to this spot again.
Enter the tomb turn to 546
Leave turn to 583
531
As you tiptoe past you discover why he didn’t notice you. He is long past caring about the affairs of this world. His dead dry limbs are held up by a giant cobweb, making him look like a grotesque puppet left hanging in front of the shrine.
The web tells you what to look for – and sure enough, crouching just inside the entrance, you make out a tense clump of bristly legs and tiny jewel-like eyes.
Attack the creature turn to 547
Run away turn to 398
532
The Akatsurese draw a distinction between temples, which are dedicated to the mortal prophet they call the Sage of Peace, and shrines, where you can make offerings to their many deities. In Narai the only significant religious building is of the former type.
The monks can provide you with medicinal herbs if you are unwell, at a cost of 5 Shards. The treatment allows you to regain 2-12 lost Stamina points, up to the limit of your unwounded Stamina score.
Discuss initiation turn to 725
Get a blessing (if an initiate) turn to 45
Leave the temple turn to 155
533
The swordsmith is an ancient fellow as thin as a mantis. To convince him that you are worthy to buy one of his swords, you need to offer a goodwill payment of 40 Shards and then make a CHARISMA roll at a Difficulty of 20 if you’re a Warrior, or Difficulty 22 if you belong to another profession. If you have the title of Junior Court Rank or Senior Court Rank you can add 2 to the dice roll. If you have the codeword Fuchsia you can add 3. Assuming the swordsmith thinks you measure up, he will
charge the following for a sword depending on the quality you require:
COMBAT bonus +2 350 Shards
COMBAT bonus +3 750 Shards
COMBAT bonus +4 900 Shards
COMBAT bonus +5 1400 Shards
COMBAT bonus +6 2800 Shards
If you purchase a sword, remember to cross off the money before turning to 572.
534
The giant wakes instantly. ‘Eh?’ he says, lurching to his feet. ‘I’ll crack your bones open and use them for soup!’
Turn to 712.
535
A narrow alluvial plain separates the high-thrust Urushi Mountains from the eastern shore. Here the peasants grow rice and cotton, and weave silk for the clothes of great lords.
Go up into the mountains turn to 359
Go north turn to 438
Go south turn to 74
536
In the quayside taverns there are sailors from every part of the
Fabled Lands, all eager to sign on and resume their life at sea. It
will cost you 15 Shards to upgrade a poor crew to average, 50 Shards to upgrade average to good, and 100 Shards to upgrade good to excellent. These prices are cumulative, so upgrading a poor crew to excellent requires 165 Shards.
Once you’ve recorded any changes on the Ship’s Manifest, turn to 612.
537
There are sentries at the gate leading to the inner keep. They draw their swords as you approach and regard you with scowls of derision. ‘Dog of a merchant, your presence would defile the House of Wistaria.’
You must remain in the outer town. Turn to 8. 538
A long tunnel stretches off into the glistening subterranean darkness.
Follow the tunnel Over the Blood-Dark Sea 445
Climb back up turn to 79
539 !
If the box above is empty, put a tick in it and turn to 541. If it was already ticked, turn to 576.
540
You dive through a side door leading to a terrace and run off across the garden. But the grass is slippery because of the rain and you lose your footing and go sprawling. As you jump to your feet the old scholar comes gliding rapidly across the lawn towards you, his robes belling out around him. He casts a spell that manifests a swarm of venomous sprites who start buzzing around your head.
Make a MAGIC roll at a Difficulty of 16.
Successful MAGIC roll turn to 637
Failed MAGIC roll turn to 658
541
By dint of intrigue, the artful Masayori has managed to raise himself to the position of minister of the interior. You run across him in the bark-roofed colonnade that leads from the outer palace to the rock garden.
‘Ah, if it isn’t our foreign friend,’ he says in a tone like over- sugared sherbet.
You give the briefest of greetings and try to move past. ‘A moment of your time, if you please. Lately the Sovereign’s rest has been disturbed by an evil creature that descends by night to perch on the palace roof. Someone has to be found who can destroy this creature, and I took the liberty of putting your name forward.’ He gives you a wide smile, reminiscent of a cat who has the key to the canary’s cage.
Volunteer for the job turn to 669
Try to get out of it turn to 384
542
You have to leave your weapons, armour and money behind because these things are not permitted in the Pure Land. The path takes you up beyond the stars to a place of invigoratingly cold air. Here you meet a venerable sage who explains many mystic truths.
Suddenly you hear the gong. At the same time, the venerable sage breaks off from his sermon to shout, ‘Cock-a- doodle-do!’ You jump up to look for the path, but the clouds underfoot have become dingy and dry, rustling like straw. They give way and you plunge downwards with a scream, expecting to fall miles back to earth, but in fact you land with a solid thwack in the middle of the kitchen table. The proprietor of the lodge pauses in the act of striking the breakfast gong to stare at you in amazement. You gaze up through the hole in the roof to see a beady-eyed rooster watching you with haughty disdain.
Racing back to your room, you discover that your weapons, armour and money have gone. Cross them off your Adventure Sheet and lose the codeword Fusty, then turn to 654.
543
You are sailing the coastal waters west of the straits that separate Shaku, the small southern island, from the main part of Akatsurai. The helmsman looks to you to set the course.
East turn to 649
North turn to 350
West turn to 102
South turn to 550
Put in at Hagashin turn to 340
Put in at Hidari turn to 361
544
‘Now we can take our daughter’s body to the cremation ground,’ say the old couple. They have no money to repay you for your help, only the assurance that you will always be a welcome guest at their cottage. Turn to 53.
545
You look down to see a tiny hunchbacked man with a thin dark face and long nose. ‘So you’re back again,’ he says grumpily before turning and strutting off. The size of the stairwell magnifies the echo of his footsteps, which is what made it sound as if a giant was corning to answer the door.
There is nothing here any more to interest you. Turn to 501.
546
You are immediately presented with two routes: low brick-lined tunnels extending straight back into the ground.
Take the left-hand tunnel turn to 604
Take the right-hand tunnel turn to 162 547
If you have a crimson arrow, turn to 564. Otherwise, turn to 481.
548
The armoury is run by the Thunderhead Clan, whose members maintain a proud tradition stretching back five hundred years. They will not make a suit of armour for just anybody. You have to convince them you are worthy by paying 50 Shards and making a CHARISMA roll at a Difficulty of 21. You can add 2 to
the dice roll for having each of these codewords: Fuchsia, Fleet and Frog. If you’re accepted you can buy one suit of armour only at the following prices.
Leather (Defence +1) 25 Shards Ring mail (Defence +2) 75 Shards Chain mail (Defence +3) 150 Shards Splint armour (Defence +4) 280 Shards Plate armour (Defence +5) 600 Shards
When you have finished your business here, turn to 572. 549
The giant’s body slumps to the floor with a noise like a collapsing sack of potatoes. ‘Phew!’ snaps the raven. ‘You cut it a bit fine, didn’t you? Call yourself a hero?’
Turn to 566.
550
You are sailing in the placid coastal waters south-west of Shaku Island.
Head south into
Gashmuru Gulf The City in the Clouds 77 Follow the coast eastwards turn to 601
Go north turn to 450
Make for the open sea turn to 102
551
A farmer puts you up for a couple of days; recover 1 Stamina if injured. As you make ready to set out, the farmer tells you that Gaman Monastery lies to the north.
Go north turn to 609
Go east over the Chu River turn to 735
Go south turn to 568
Go west to Oni Province turn to 356
552
The Great Saddle Road is a metalled highway linking the country’s two great centres of power: Chambara, the imperial capital, and Mukogawa, where the rule of the Moonrise Clan lords is unchallenged. Where are you headed?
Westwards turn to 590
Eastwards turn to 178
North over open country turn to 515
South towards the Clearwater Shrine turn to 444 553
You are one of the Shogun’s trusted lieutenants and can roam the inner precincts unchallenged. Ranks of guards bow deeply as you pass between them along the quiet corridors. A servant waits in front of the door to your private apartments.
Enter your apartments turn to 464
Request an audience with the Shogun turn to 491
Go to see his spymaster turn to 32
Leave the manor turn to 178
554
The rural estates of the lords of Toho are very different from the dwellings of their cousins on the western island. Here you see great log-built manor houses with thatched roofs as big as a temple’s. The peasant huts are clustered close to the home of their lord, in fear of attacks from the upland barbarians.
Go north turn to 633
Go into the mountains turn to 319